I know that this doesn’t seem like a myeloma-related topic, but in a way it is, since it involves stress…MY stress levels, that is! This morning, you see, I read a bit of news that greatly upset me…and, as we know, stress makes myeloma cells proliferate. So that is why I am writing a post on this topic today…
Quick aside. Thanks to the 2009 award-winning documentary “The Cove,” we now know about the absolutely horrendous massacres of helpless dolphins that are herded into a blind cove in Japan…where they are brutally killed with spears and knives. I have still not been able to watch this documentary…probably never will…Too upsetting…
But let’s get to the topic at hand: whales. This morning I learned of another unnecessary and horrific massacre of majestic sea creatures…a massacre of pilot whales that happens right here in Europe, in my Europe…in a Danish protectorate called the Faroe Islands. This morning I saw the photos of a cute smiling little boy happily stabbing a bloody, dying whale. 🙁
Well, that was IT. Completely shocked and outraged, I decided to write this post…By the way, I apologize for any repetitions, but I am still upset…
Hundreds of beautiful pilot whales, babies included!, get surrounded out in the open ocean by the Faroe islanders on their boats and driven to shallow waters near the beach…where they are slowly and brutally slaughtered with knives, stones, clubs and spears…well, you get the picture.
Most civilized countries try to SAVE whales and dol
phins…for obvious reasons that I don’t need to list here. Yet even recently, at the 2010 meeting of the International Whaling Commission in Morocco, representatives of the 88 member nations discussed whether or not to lift the 24 year ban on commercial whaling (taken from Wikipedia).
LIFT THE BAN? YOU’VE GOT TO BE BLOODY KIDDING!!! Not surprisingly, three of the main whaling countries–Iceland, Japan and Norway–demanded that the ban be lifted. OUTRAGEOUS!!! Shame, shame, shame…
There are a few things we can do…and it will only take a few minutes:
- Sign the online petitions. The one that Stefano and I signed this morning, re. the Faroe Islands slaughter, can be found here: http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/Stop-Whale-Massacre-in-Faroe-Islands/
- Write letters. Letters are even more effective. At age 14 (35 years ago!), I was one of the founding members of the chapter of Amnesty International here in Florence, Italy. I know that letters in particular can make a big difference…The above link also gives addresses…I am going to send a personal message to the Prime Minister later today…
- Go on whale watches, especially those organized by scientific teams…I lived on Cape Cod, MA, for a few years, so I have been on several whale watches with the Dolphin Fleet (these are a couple of the photos I took a few years ago)…It is an amazing experience. And hey, if the pro-whaling countries were brought to realize that whale watching could really contribute to their country’s economy, perhaps they would agree to stop killing these magnificent animals…
- Support organizations such as Sea Shepherd: http://www.seashepherd.org/
Thank you!!!